


If this is Ginny

by thequidditchpitch_archivist



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Post War, Post-War, Romance, The Quidditch Pitch: Eternity
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2011-06-09
Updated: 2011-06-09
Packaged: 2018-10-27 13:26:16
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,289
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10809918
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/thequidditchpitch_archivist/pseuds/thequidditchpitch_archivist
Summary: Ginny ran away from Harry, can she find her way back?





	If this is Ginny

**Author's Note:**

> Note from Annie, the archivist: this story was originally archived at [The Quidditch Pitch](http://fanlore.org/wiki/The_Quidditch_Pitch), which went offline in 2015 when the hosting expired, at a time I was not able to renew it. I contacted Open Doors, hoping to preserve the archive using an old backup, and began importing these works as an Open Doors-approved project in April 2017. Open Doors e-mailed all authors about the move and posted announcements, but may not have reached everyone. If you are (or know) this creator, please contact us using the e-mail address on [The Quidditch Pitch collection profile](http://archiveofourown.org/collections/thequidditchpitch/profile).
> 
> **Author's notes:**
> 
> This story is inspired by the song "If this is Austin" by Blake Shelton. It’s just a little story that I hope puts a smile on your face at the end of the day.

Harry Potter smiled to himself, and pressed the ‘end recording’ button on one of his favorite machines that George had ever invented. The last bit of the recording always made him smile for a brief moment, always followed by a moment of longing and grief. It had been nearly a four years since he had voluntarily walked into the Forbidden Forest and sacrificed himself, and ended the war. It had also been nearly a year since Ginny had walked out on him, and her family.

 

_Harry looked at his beautiful, sleeping fiancé, and was worried. Something had scared her out of her wits that night at her parent’s house. For the life of him, he couldn’t remember what old Perkins had said that bothered her so much. They were standing in front of the fireplace, Harry leaning against the wall, and Ginny in his arms, her head resting on his chest, looking out at young Teddy and Vicky beat George at Exploding Snap, giggling to see George avoid cursing with all his might as the cards exploded in his hands. The fire flared emerald, and both he and Ginny dropped their hands to their wands without thinking. When they saw the old, wrinkled head of Perkins, they relaxed and smiled that the old man. The old man smiled back. “Hello, Mr. and Mrs. Potter, it's so good to see you. Have you seen Arthur around by chance? I want to wish him a happy birthday.”_

 

_Ginny giggled silently, and she answered the man, “No, Mr. Perkins, were waiting for him to get in from the shed so we can all have dinner, but I will let him know you called.”_

_The old man smiled fondly. “Thank you, thank you both. I hope to see you again, James, Lily.” And with that, the old man’s head popped out of the fire._

 

_Ginny had gone stiff in his arms, and had refused to talk to him the rest of the night, and Flooed home early. What had him even more worried was, for the first time since they had started living together, she had asked him not to sleep in the same bed with her, and had retreated to the guest room in their small flat. Harry sighed, bent down to kiss her lightly on the lips, and whispered, “I love you, Ginny, and never anyone else.”_

 

That was the last time Harry had seen or spoken to her. He came home that night, nearly a year ago to two pieces of parchment on the kitchen counter. One was a clipping from the _Evening Prophet_ , announcing the star chaser Ginny Weasley’s hiatus from the game, and a note, in Ginny’s writing, that they was over, and not to worry, because she would be safe, and she wanted him to move on. 

 

Well, six years of Hogwarts proved one thing: he was never good at following instructions.

 

Harry smiled sadly, and with a moment of concentration, Apparated to the Burrow, for the weekly Sunday diner, that he was still mandated to attend.

 

***

 

Ginny sat in the small flat she shared with a young Muggle girl who was about three years older. Ginny liked Jessica, she was quiet and never asked any questions when Ginny would fall into a brooding silence. 

 

Jessica entered the flat, and Ginny only reacted slightly to her. After a few minutes, Jessica sat down next to her on the sofa and drank some of the whiskey they had. “You know, Ginny, I normally don’t intrude, but the brooding is getting worse.” Ginny looked at the dark skinned girl. “Before, it used to be once a month, then it became more frequent, but now, it’s nearly every day. You really should go back to him.”

 

Ginny’s head snapped up from her tumbler full of amber liquid. “How do you know?” she asked quietly, afraid her past had caught up with her.

 

“There is only one thing that would stop a young, twenty year old, good looking girl from dating for almost a year, and that is a young, good looking guy that you are madly in love with. That, and the fact that you finger that very nice and, might I add, impressive, engagement ring you wear on that chain every time some guy is hitting on you, or you're brooding especially long. If he left you, you wouldn’t be wearing that ring, and if it was mutual, you wouldn’t brood, and if he was dead, I would see some tears.”

 

Ginny smiled against her will. “Good observation. You remind me of a friend of mine from, from before.” Ginny’s smile faded as Jessica’s face was replaced, for a fleeting moment, with Hermione’s. 

 

“Why did you leave him?” Jessica asked.

 

“It’s complicated. He’s, well, He was famous in our town.” Ginny invented on the fly, but she had a feeling that she could weave the truth into her story. “Up north, we were kind of isolated, and there was this gang that was, well, they were terrorizing us. He, well, back when I was eleven, I made a huge mistake, and it ended up with my life on the line. Most my family thought I was dead, that there was no chance to save me in time, but he came and got me, nearly getting himself killed in the process.” Ginny took a deep breath.

 

“A fire? He ran into a fire?” Jessica asked, and Ginny’s mind was forced back into the Chamber. Ginny nodded. “So your boy is no boy, but a man then?” Jessica asked.

 

Ginny laughed. “He is now, but he’s only a year older than me, a year and fourteen days, to be exact. He ran in to save me at twelve. He’s been at front of the rebellion since he was eleven.”

 

Jessica’s features scrunched up. “I think I would remember a rebellion.”

 

Ginny sighed. “Jessica, I am telling you things I shouldn’t, but I can’t explain everything. Just take my word that this is close enough to the truth. He, well, he was always fighting. He was an orphan, abused growing up by his aunt and uncle, never had a friend until he met my brother, at _eleven._ He’s been responsible for saving three members of my family, and he had to actually die to kill the snake that lead the gang.”

 

“Wow! He does sound like a hero.”

 

“He is.” Ginny smiled. “And the best part is, he hates it. He wants nothing to do with the fame. He feels guilty that so many people died, and all he wants it to be normal.” Ginny’s mind wandered back to the times they spent at his flat, just sitting on the floor, watching a movie, eating takeout. He smiled faded away “And that’s the problem,. He’s not normal. He’s bloody famous, and well, look at me.” Ginny held out her hands, not realizing she had stood up. “I’m from a poor family, I’m tainted, I, I’m not good enough.” Ginny slumped into her chair. “Everyone expects me to be someone else. There're always women throwing themselves at him. What happens when he finds someone that’s better than me, sexier than me, willing to do more than me?”

 

Jessica stood up and hugged Ginny, and she broke down in her friend’s arms. After a few moments, Jessica spoke up. “Did… wait, what was his name again?” Ginny told her, and Jessica stiffened a little, but continued. “Did Harry ever give you any hint that he thinks that way? Has he ever been unfaithful to you?”

 

Ginny laughed. “Harry begged me to take him back after he left me at the end. He, well, he has only kissed one other girl, once. He loves me, he told me that I was the first person he told that to, and I am the first person he remembers hearing it from.” Ginny looked at Jessica. “I should go back to him, if just to apologize. It’s been a year, he probably moved on.” 

 

Jessica snorted. “He hasn’t, believe me.”

 

Ginny tried to fight back the tears, but couldn’t. “I wish I could.”

 

****

 

Ginny had the hood of her cloak up. The Leaky was empty on the middle of the day on Wednesdays, and Ginny knew it. There were only two people, and they were off in the corner of the room, hiding as much as Ginny was. She walked up to the bar and looked Hannah Longbottom in the eye. “I need a private room, with a Floo connection, for about an hour.” She said, trying to disguise her voice. Hannah looked at her, and shook her head. “Take a look at this.” Ginny said, sliding a very particular Galleon to her. Hannah’s eyebrow arched, but looked at it, and paled slightly. She took another look at Ginny, and then waved her upstairs. After a minute, she led her into a small, private room. 

 

“Okay, who are you?” Hannah asked, and Ginny let her hood slide back, and smiled as Hannah gasped and pulled Ginny into a hug. “Oh thank Merlin you’re safe! Neville’s been crazy with worry, Harry never comes in for lunch anymore, Ron and Hermione are a mess! They have pushed back their wedding; they both agree that they are going to wait as long as it takes, just to make sure you are there.” Hannah was babbling on, and Ginny was honestly surprised at this. Hannah, although not a close friend like Luna or Hermione during their school days, was emphatic that Ginny be a bridesmaid at her wedding, saying that any friend of Nev should be hers as well, and they had a built a wonderful, if calmer relationship, since. She was rarely this excitable.

 

“Hannah, I’m fine. Just promise me you won’t tell anyone you saw me.” Hannah pulled a face. “Fine, just Nev. Please understand, I’m,” Ginny hesitated, “I’m not ready to come back just yet. I just want to contact Harry via Floo. He used to have today off, back, well, back then. I just want to tell him I’m safe and well, to apologize.”

 

Hannah smiled. “But you’re not ready to be close enough where he can touch you, because if he does, you're done, and melt right back into his arms, aren’t you? You still love him.”

 

Ginny looked at her friend, and pulled out the chain from her neck to show the engagement ring still there, “I never stopped. I just wanted to give him a chance to find a better woman, you know, a woman that deserves being with a hero. I’ll bet anything he found her already, and I just hope I don’t Floo into anything I don’t want to see.”

 

Hannah looked at her. “I would tell you something, but I think you need to hear it from Harry yourself. Go, use the Floo, and I’ll be back in a bit with tea, and I’ll keep my silence, for now.”

 

Ginny watched as Hannah walked away, and then, resolving herself to having her heart broken, grabbed the Floo powder and stuck her head in, yelling out Harry’s address. Her head came to a stop, and she looked up from the fireplace to see the living room of the flat she shared with Harry for over a year. It was identical, not a thing had changed. “Harry!” she called, not sure if she wanted him to be there or not. 

 

A mechanical beep answered back and she smiled. It was Harry’s favorite invention of George’s. It was a Muggle answering machine that responded when someone called out the owner's name from the Floo, and would transcribe the whole message to a special parchment that she knew Harry keep on his desk at work. 

 

Harry’s voice came loud and clear from the speaker. “If this is a reporter or some type of fan, I suggest you leave and never tell anyone my address.” There was a pause. “Hey, family and friends. If it's Monday, I promised I would be covering for a friend some guard duty in the holding cells, so don’t worry why I’m not home, especially you two, Mum, Hermione. If you have some damaged nerves and are contacting me on Tuesday, well, just remember I have been pulling 24yrs shifts on Tuesday since I started with the Aurors, and you need to be check by the Healers at St. Mungo’s.” Harry laughed slightly at the joke and Ginny smiled, it felt good to hear his laugh, even recorded. “If it's Wednesday, I’m taking Teddy to the zoo and then out to a movie. Yes, Hermione, Mum, Andromeda, I will have him home before seven tonight, showered and ready for bed. George, Nev and Ron, I will be at the Leaky at nine, like always, and yes, George, I remember I have the first three rounds.” Again, there was a silence, and Ginny thought the message was done, but what the recording of Harry said next sent her for a loop. “Oh, and well, if this is Gin, I still love you.”

 

Ginny pulled her head out of the fire and was shocked to see Neville there next to Hannah, smiling at her. “You are a thick one, aren’t you?’ he asked.

 

“Nev, his machine, the recording one, at the end, he says he still loves me.” Ginny said, flabbergasted. 

 

“Yes, of course it does. It’s been saying that since the day you left. He has to by three rounds every Wednesday night with the guys because it’s still there.” Neville said, smiling wider still.

 

“Every day?” she asked. Neville and Hannah nodded. “He still loves me? Why on earth would he love me?”

 

Neville shook his head. “You told Hannah that he needs a woman that deserves being with the hero, well, he says that you just found a man that almost worthy enough to be with you, a goddess. He says ‘almost’ because he says, and most of us agreed until you walked out, that no man would be good enough for you.” Neville smiled at her. “He’s still holding a torch for you and you for him. You need to fix this, and soon.” With that, Neville kissed Hannah on the cheek and left the room. Hannah, in her eternal kindness, sat next to her and offered her some tea, and the sat in silence, until Ginny made up her mind, and rushed home.

 

****

 

Harry walked up to the door of his flat and smiled at the bundle of food in a picnic basket that was on his doorstep. His adoptive mother and sister knew him too well. On his days with Teddy, Harry didn’t eat until very late, if at all. He preferred it sometime, since it meant he got drunk faster, but he had to work early tomorrow, and well, he couldn’t afford to get plastered. He picked up the basket and ran his fingers lightly on the door, unlocking it. As Harry stepped in, he looked at the machine in front of the fireplace. There was a blue light blinking, indicating that it wanted to confirm the outgoing message. Odd, Harry hadn’t recorded one since Sunday night, before he had left to the Burrow. Maybe it was Teddy playing with it again. The four year old had left some funny messages on the machine. Harry smiled, and pressed the play button, but the voice that emitted from the speakers was not one he expected, or heard, in nearly a year’s time. 

 

“Harry, I know this is the only way to leave you a voice message, and I have to say it, not write it down. By the way, I am more than a little shocked that I am still a key for the wards. Okay, let me stop rambling and get to it.” Ginny’s voice was coming from the machine. “Harry, if you’re still wiling, my heart is still yours, I should have listened to it a little more, I was just so scared, and if I did, maybe it wouldn’t have take me so long to know where I belong, here, with you. I’m so, so, so sorry this happened, and if you want to never see me again, I accept that, I just, Harry, I love you, and I want to be with you, as a Potter, and a Weasley, hell, as a bum on the street, I don’t care, I just want to be here.” The machine cut off, and Harry nearly slunk to the floor, before noticing something he hadn’t seen when he walked in, probably due to the shiny silky material that was his father’s cloak on the table next to her.

 

Ginny was standing in front of him, in all her beautiful glory. Her bright brown eyes were glistening with tears, but she stood proud, her face resigned, as if he were going to throw her out. “I should leave, shouldn’t I?” she asked. Harry shook his head, not wanting to believe she was here, after a year of searching for her. “I, I just wanted to make sure you got the message, but it was a bad idea. You would have no way of contacting me, and, well, I wanted you to.” Tears started down her face, and Harry got up and took a step towards her. Her hand when to her neck, fingering the ring he had given her nearly eighteen months prior. “I should give this back to you, if you want it. You should give it to someone who deserves you.”

 

Harry barked a laugh, slightly deranged. “I didn’t think there is a witch foul enough for me. I, well, thank you. I must be the luckiest man on the planet to have spent so much time with you. I, I just don’t deserve a woman like you.”

 

Ginny looked at him, and ran into his arms. She was sobbing freely now, and whispering something into his chest. “I love you, I love you, I love you. Please, take me back.” Harry held her out at arm’s length, and brought her in to a searing kiss. When he broke it, he looked deep into her eyes. 

 

“You were just about perfect when we were together; now, you have this tiny flaw, that for whatever reason, you think you don’t deserve me. You. Are. Wrong. I am the lucky one to be with you, and nothing will ever change that. Hell, if you are seriously worried about being a Potter, then I’ll change my name. I don’t want anything but my prat-ish ways to ever get you this upset again.” She smiled at him. 

 

“Harry, I’m so sorry. I was just afraid of being a Potter, of being the Chosen One's wife, I just, oh hell… I’m not sure what drove me to do it, except I’m afraid of not living up to Lily’s mark.” 

 

Harry laughed. “Gin, you surpassed my mother years ago. You are just as strong, if not stronger than she ever was. We are free from the evil that made her the legend she is, and yes, we did. I just want to be married to you and that all I want or expect from you, to love me, want me, the way you did, and do, from the sound of your message.” Gin slapped his arm playfully, but he smiled at her. “Gin, you know I’ll take you back, it was never a question. I hindsight, it’s only fair. I left for nearly a year, too. Although I did have the decency to break it off in person.” She slapped his arm again, and smiled at him, as he laughed at her, those wonderful green eyes making her feel like she was home.

 

 


End file.
